Tampa
Tampa loads easy off I-275 and I-75, but downtown condo garages have low clearance and no room to swing a hauler, so the driver will usually load in a nearby lot with open sky over it.
Northbound Route
Florida to New England car shipping.
One road. Both directions. All season. We own the trucks that run Florida to New England, and our drivers are on that road all spring. No deposit, nothing upfront, and you pay when the car is at your door up north.
The Northbound Run, Told Straight
The run starts at your door in Florida and ends at your door in New England. On the west coast the truck works Tampa, Bradenton, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples and heads north on I-75 through Ocala toward the state line. On the east coast it works Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Jacksonville and heads north on I-95. Both roads end up on I-95 through the Carolinas and Virginia, past Washington, over the Delaware Memorial Bridge, up the Jersey Turnpike, around the New York metro, and into Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. Depending on which two doors we are working with, that is roughly 1,000 to 1,550 miles.
It is a multi-day run, and it is not a straight shot. Your car is not alone up there. The truck is full of other people's cars, and every one of them has a door at each end. The driver loads and unloads in the order that makes the route work, runs his legal hours, sleeps, and goes again. Add the traffic between Baltimore and Washington, add the New York metro, add spring weather, and you can see why we give you a window and not a promise. What you get instead of a promise is a phone call. When the window moves, you hear it from us before you have to go looking for us.
Lopes Express Shipping is a licensed and insured motor carrier, USDOT 3013626, MC-30467. Not a broker. Marcus Lopes has been running this lane since 2011, which is 15 years on this road, with 7 trucks and drivers who are our employees. Transport is open carrier, and the cargo is motor vehicles only. Pickup and delivery are door to door, as far as a full-size car hauler can legally and safely get. If the street is too narrow, if the branches hang too low, or if the guard house will not pass a rig that long, the driver agrees on a meeting point with you nearby, usually a few minutes away.
Cities on this run
Where We Load in Florida
Pickup and delivery are door to door wherever a full size car hauler can legally and safely get in.
Sarasota
Sarasota is one of the heaviest April and May pickups on this lane, and a lot of these doors are behind a gate, so either leave our name at the guard house or plan to meet the driver just outside it.
Bradenton
Bradenton runs smooth from the newer neighborhoods near I-75, though the older streets closer to the water have tight turns and low oak branches that a full-size hauler cannot duck under.
Naples
Naples has long private drives, heavy tree cover and gated entries, so a plaza on a main road is often the faster and safer place to put the ramps down.
Fort Myers
Fort Myers sits right on I-75, which makes it one of the simpler doors on the northbound run, and it is a strong spring pickup for seasonal residents heading home.
Orlando
Orlando means I-4, so the driver aims for mid morning or mid afternoon instead of fighting the corridor at rush hour. Orlando to Woburn, Massachusetts is one of the sample prices the company publishes.
Fort Lauderdale
Fort Lauderdale has narrow residential blocks, canals and one way streets, so the driver often loads on a wider cross street a block or two from the house.
Miami
In Miami the clock is set by traffic, not by distance. We load early when we can, and we confirm the address the day before, because many buildings here will not let a hauler near the garage entrance.
We also load in Jacksonville, West Palm Beach and the towns along I-95 and I-75 in between. If your town is not on this list, call and ask. If it sits on this lane, we are already driving past it.
April and May Are the Busy Months Going North
Northbound is the spring direction. When the heat and the humidity come back to Florida, the cars start heading home. March brings the early ones. April and May are the crush, and that is when this side of the lane is busiest. By June it quiets down, and the trucks are still running, just with more room on the deck.
Busy season changes what is possible with dates. In April a driver's route is half built before your call comes in. The earlier you get on the schedule, the more he can shape that route around your door instead of fitting you into whatever is left. A week or two of notice is worth more than any rush fee anyone will try to sell you, and calling early costs you nothing here, because there is no deposit and no card taken.
We still will not hand you a date and swear on it. Weather, a breakdown, a customer who is not home at the other end, and the hours a driver is legally allowed to run all move a truck. So you get a window, not a promise, and you get a call when the window changes. If you have a hard cutoff, a closing, a flight, a lease that ends, say so on the first call. We would rather tell you up front that we cannot make it than promise it and be wrong once your car is already on the deck.
What Actually Drives the Price Going North
Distance comes first, and the published rate on this lane is $1.10 per mile. Here are sample estimates the company publishes. Pompano Beach, Florida to Boston, Massachusetts, 1,458 miles at $1,603. Naples, Florida to Manchester, New Hampshire, 1,529 miles at $1,681. Orlando, Florida to Woburn, Massachusetts, 1,298 miles at $1,427. Jacksonville, Florida to Danbury, Connecticut, 996 miles at $1,095. Those are examples, not quotes. Your number comes from your two actual doors, and you will hear it on the phone.
Vehicle size is next. A sedan is not a pickup and it is not a large SUV. Bigger vehicles take more deck and more weight, and they cost more to move, so tell us the year, make and model instead of just saying car. After that it is access. A door a mile off I-75 in Fort Myers is a different job than a door at the end of a long private road an hour from the highway, at both ends of the run. Last is the calendar, because April and May are the weeks everyone wants going north. Top Load, where the car rides on the upper deck, is available for an extra charge.
Here is the part nobody tells you. If you collect five quotes and one comes back well under the rest, that low number is usually a broker's opening bid, not a price. A broker owns no trucks. He takes your card, posts your car on a load board, and waits for a stranger's truck to accept that number. If no truck accepts it in the middle of April, one of two things happens. The number goes up, or your car sits in the driveway while you keep calling. We do it the other way around. Nothing upfront, no deposit, and you pay on delivery, after the car is in front of you and you have walked around it.
What it costs
Sample prices on this lane
Real routes off our own rate sheet. Examples for a standard sedan, not quotes.
| Pickup | Delivery | Miles | Example total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pompano Beach, FL 33060 | Boston, MA 02108 | 1,458 | $1,603 |
| Naples, FL 34101 | Manchester, NH 03101 | 1,529 | $1,681 |
| Orlando, FL 32801 | Woburn, MA 01801 | 1,298 | $1,427 |
| Jacksonville, FL 32202 | Danbury, CT 06810 | 996 | $1,095 |
| Palm Beach, FL 33407 | Hyannis, MA 02601 | 1,471 | $1,618 |
These are examples for a standard sedan on an open carrier, not quotes. Pickups, large SUVs and anything oversized cost more. Your price depends on the two doors, the vehicle and the season, and we confirm it before anything is scheduled.
Ask this before you book anywhere
Who owns the truck that will carry my car, and can you tell me the driver's name?
What happens to my price if no driver accepts the load?
How much is due today, and what is due on delivery?
How a Northbound Shipment Runs
1. You call and we price the real run
Give us the two doors, the year, make and model of the car, and roughly when you want to go. We price the run you are actually asking for, not a teaser number that grows later. You get the figure on the phone or in writing, whichever you want.
2. You book with nothing down
$0 upfront. No deposit, no card held on file. You are on the driver's schedule, and payment is due when the car is delivered in New England.
3. Pickup day at your Florida door
The driver calls ahead. Take your personal items out of the car first, because we are authorized to carry motor vehicles and nothing else. Then you walk the car together and the Bill of Lading is inspected and signed at pickup by both of you, before it ever goes up the ramp.
4. The road north
The car is strapped over the wheels and ratcheted down before the truck moves. From there it is I-75 or I-95 north over several days, with other customers' cars on the same deck. There is no app and no map with a dot on it. There is one phone number, and Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM Eastern, a person picks it up who knows where the truck is.
5. Delivery, walkaround, payment
The driver calls ahead again. You walk the car a second time against the same Bill of Lading, both of you sign at delivery, and then you pay. If anything needs to be noted, it gets written down while the driver is standing in front of you, not three days later over email.
Questions About the Florida to New England Run
Can the price go up after you have my car?
No. The price you agree to on the phone is what you pay at delivery, with nothing added. The only thing that changes it is a change to the job itself, a different vehicle than the one we priced or an address that moves the run. In that case you hear it from us before the car goes on the truck, not after.
How much do you need up front?
Nothing. $0 upfront, no deposit. You pay on delivery, once the car is at your door in New England and you have looked it over. That also answers the oldest risk in this business, which is a deposit taken before anyone knows whose truck is coming for your car.
How long does it take to get from Florida to New England?
Typical transit on this lane is a matter of days. Where you fall in the driver's route and how far your two doors sit off the interstate both matter. We give you a window on the first call and we update it as the truck moves. We do not guarantee a pickup date or a delivery date, and you should think twice about anyone who does.
Are you a broker?
No. Lopes Express Shipping is a licensed and insured motor carrier, USDOT 3013626, MC-30467. It is family run, the drivers are our employees, and we own the trucks that run Florida to New England.
Does my car have to be running?
Yes. The car needs to start, drive up the ramp and steer on the deck. We do not offer inoperable or winch service. Transport is open carrier, and the trailer carries motor vehicles only, so the trunk and the back seat need to be empty before pickup day.
What happens if something is wrong at delivery?
That is exactly what the two inspections are for. The car is inspected and signed for at pickup and again at delivery, by both parties, on the same Bill of Lading. If there is a difference between those two walkarounds, it gets written down at delivery with the driver present. Then you are dealing with the carrier that actually carried the car, and not a middleman handing you off to a trucking company you never chose.
Get a Price for the Run North
Call or text (941) 205-0012, or email info@lopesexpressshipping.com. Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM Eastern. We speak English and Portuguese. Nothing upfront, no deposit, and you pay on delivery.
LOPES NEVER STOPS